


He's Got a Date Tonight

by muldersboyishenthousiasm



Series: The Date [1]
Category: The X-Files
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-11
Updated: 2017-09-11
Packaged: 2018-12-26 10:03:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,631
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12056673
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/muldersboyishenthousiasm/pseuds/muldersboyishenthousiasm
Summary: Mulder's got a date tonight and asks clothing advice from Scully.





	He's Got a Date Tonight

**5.30 pm, Scully and Mulder’s office**

“ _…we are unfortunately not in any position to determine with certitude the cause of the accident. Agent Mulder claims to have found evidence of a presence in the locker room where the victim was found dead a week ago. After a…_ ”

 _Bang!_ Dana Scully jumped three feet in the air when her colleague stood up abruptly, sending his chair to the floor. She rolled her eyes at him, trying to find her composure and resumed typing the last of the reports they had forgotten to send their superior. Fox Mulder seemed unaware of the disruption he had caused and stretched his tired back while sighing heavily.

“That’s it Scully, I’m done. I’m going home,” he said.

Apparently, his partner was concentrating so hard she had not heard him. Either that or she was ignoring him, attempting to complete the task at hand. He stared at her for a minute than walked over to look at was she was writing. She turned to face him.

“Weren’t you going home, Mulder?” she asked him after a while. “I’m trying to finish this report so I can finally leave the office and draw myself a nice warm bath.”

He ignored her and pointed at her computer screen.

“Scully. How many times do I have to repeat it? It wasn’t just a presence that we felt in the locker room. It was a _ghostly_ presence. And I swear to you, we could feel the variation of temperature in the room. Also, the humidity levels were obviously abnormal…”

“Mulder, just let me…” she tiredly protested.

He remained quiet and shrugged.

“Alright. This time I’ll let it slide. But it's only because I haven’t got time to explain you once more how ghosts affect humidity levels.”

“Thank you for sparing me,” she turned back to her screen and kept on typing furiously on the keyboard.

She stopped when she felt him bend over her shoulder once more. She knew he was squinting at the screen trying to read her interpretation of the conclusion of their last case. She could feel the warmth from his body irradiate from him and gently envelop her.

“So,” he said loudly. Her heart skipped a beat. “Besides that bath, what are you doing tonight, Scully?”

“I haven’t really got any plans. I’ll probably just try to find some decent program on the cable. Maybe continue my reading of this new book I bought.”

She watched him put his suit jacket on.

“I was thinking, maybe you could help me out with something. It’s a bit personal but you’re a woman and I need a woman’s advice,” Mulder said while trying to straighten to knot of his loosened tie.

“What, you haven’t got a date, Mulder? Have you?” she asked. Immediately regretting her words, she turned to the computer and printed her report.

Her colleague narrowed his eyes at her. When he could not find any indication of her mocking him, he stopped fiddling with his strange-looking tie and smiled.

“As a matter of fact, I do,” he proudly announced her.

Deep down, Scully was horrified but tried to hide it under an almost sincere smile. Mulder had been so tired this last couple of days that going out might improve his moral.

To say she was not disappointed that it had to be a date with some anonymous girl would be a lie. But she was not the type of woman to make a fuss and she would certainly not be the one to keep her friend from enjoying his date tonight.

She used her most sincere tone of voice.

“Oh… I’m happy for you, Mulder.”

He remained oblivious to her struggle.

“I’m supposed to meet her for dinner tonight. I’ll bring her to that new chic restaurant. The one that opened about two weeks ago. I heard that they serve almost any type of cuisine there. So I bet it will be possible for her to order anything that might strike her fancy. What do you think?”

Scully frowned. She stood up to go to the printer and picked up the two copies of the report she just finished writing. She put one copy on Mulder’s desk and inserted the other in a white file in her briefcase.

“It looks like a flawless date plan, Mulder. And if you’re talking about _Le restaurant St-Azur_ , I’m convinced your date will enjoy her evening. I heard there was pleasant music, nice tables and efficient waiters.”

 _Efficient waiters?_   Where did that comment come from, Dana? Try not to sound envious at least, girl.

Her partner was still grinning like a little boy unwrapping Christmas presents.

“At what time did you make the reservation?”

“Nine.”

“That’s good. It leaves you time to go shower and change clothes.”

Mulder’s smiled wavered. Scully raised an eyebrow. She went to the coat rack and reached for her overcoat.

“About that…” he shuffled his feet. “Could you give me a hand with something? When I called to make the reservation, the maître d’ reminded me to wear formal attire. But I  
haven’t got any.”

“Don’t worry, Mulder, it doesn’t mean you have to wear a tux.”

“But…”

“Just wear your charcoal suit with a nice tie.”

He opened his mouth but she was faster than him.

“Not the one with Vulcan ears on it.”

He offered her his endearing lopsided grin.

“I see your point,” he nodded.

She tied her coat tightly to her waist.

“Find one that hasn’t got any patterns on it. Haven’t you got a green or blue one? That’d be fine.”

He looked pensive for a few seconds than shook his head emphatically. An unruly lock of hair bounced on his forehead and went still when he thanked her.

“I’ll see you on Monday, Scully! Thanks for the advice!”

Then he was gone. Scully stared at the doorframe where he had just disappeared and bend over to retrieve her purse and suitcase.

Nice, she thought, I just gave fashion advice to the guy with whom I wish I could go on a date with.

**7.30 pm, Scully’s appartment**

 At last Scully was soaking in the hot water she had been dreaming of since the beginning of the afternoon. She had just hung up after having spoken with her mum for an hour when she heard a knock on the door. She gritted her teeth to avoid letting out a desperate cry. She got out of her bath, put on her soft bathrobe and marched towards the front door angrily. Her anger immediately dissipated when she spied through the peephole.

 _Mulder._  A dashing Mulder was staring back at her. He was holding two ties in his hands. A green and a blue one. Scully unlocked the door and ushered him in. She could swear she felt his gaze run over her still wet skin and her soaked hair.

“You said I should either wear the green or blue one with my charcoal suit,” he explained after the initial shock of noticing she was in her bathrobe. “I couldn’t decide so I came here.”

Dana felt her cheeks grow hotter by the second. She tightened the lapels of her garments around her and pointed at the green tie.

“This one. It emphasises the colour of your eyes. She’ll like it. Your date.”

Mulder put the blue tie in his pocket and began tying the other one around his neck. He stopped his movements when he noticed her watching him, water still dripping from her hair.

“Aren’t you going to go get dress?” he wondered.

She raised her eyebrow at him.

“You mean, if I’m going to go put my pyjamas on?”

He laughed nervously.

“Of course not!”

He was done tying his knot, so he put both his hands in the pockets of his pants. His pants were matching the charcoal suit jacket and the white shirt he had chosen. And now it was also matching the green tie she had suggested for him to wear for his dinner date. He had thought that she would have understood by now what he was trying to do. But apparently, she had not yet, for she was still staring at him.

“Scully?”

“Yeah, Mulder?”

“You okay?”

She swallowed.

“Yes.”

“Scully?”

“Uh?”

He had to be more direct.

“Would you accept to be my date for tonight?”

Darn it! He felt the blood rush to his cheeks when she looked up at him with her beautiful blue eyes.

“I… I… made this reservation at 9 pm tonight because I knew you wouldn’t have any plans after work besides taking a bath. I wanted to be sure you would have enough time to unwind. Then I decided to use the excuse of not knowing which tie to wear to come up to your door and ask you on a date. I For two days, I've known that you were dying to go try that new restaurant.”

Scully still was flabbergasted.

“But… why a date, Mulder?”

He chewed on his lower lip nervously.

“Well… I’ve been thinking about taking you out for a while now. I just couldn’t find the opportunity. And after the exhausting cases I’ve been dragging you in the last couple of months, I thought it might be a good idea to invite you out on a date… So I gathered sufficient courage and called to make a reservation. So here we are." He paused while gazing at her. "So, do you want to go on a date with me, Dana?”

Her expression softened and she stepped forward. She reached for his jaw and ran her thumb against the smooth skin of his cheek.

“I’d be delighted Mulder,” she murmured. “Just let me find that green dress that matches your tie.”


End file.
